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Fryer cleaning

How do you guys recommend cleaning fryers? A few of our customers have fryers that are so bad that sometimes I wanna tell them "call someone else, I'm not doing it". I'm not being a baby, I know fryers are greasy. But I'm talking extreme. Where you can't see parts and screws and stuff. How can all that grease be cleaned? And how do you explain it to the customer?

Natural Gas burns at 1250*, new shortening flash burns at just over 450*, the older the grease the lower the flash point thus the grease on the controls and near the burners are a class A fire hazard.

I notate my invoice to state the fire hazard and for the customer to operate the fryers at their own risk... although any lawyer will get around that statement and sue your pants off unless you disconnect the fryer and make it inoperable.

If it's an electric fryer you don't have such a flash burn risk but the old grease contains acidic and caustic substances that will eat wire insulation and make it ineffective thus may cause a short. Electrical fires will also ignite the old shortening.

Oil fires are some of the hottest burning fires in a restaurant and the hardest to put out.

May want to explain that to them.

btw... again, if they are gas fryers and the grease is leaking from one of the flame tube welds... shut it down or refuse to work on it... your insurance company will thank you as you are the "last professional" on the job site and they may have to pay for the fire damage.

If in doubt contact your boss and explain the risk as you see it. He may call you off of that job or at the very least take over the communications then advise you.

If you have a camera phone, take a shot, send him the picture via cell email. He can then send it to whom ever may be in charge or his insurance company/lawyer at a later date when they don't listen to your advice.

Notes on a signed invoice saves lives, jobs, and reputations. On additional invoice notes require them to add their initials by such a hazard comment.